Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Let's get planning for a pool in Kuna

Kuna city officials should actually feel pretty good right now following last week’s resounding failure of the proposed $5 million bond for a new city hall, land and swimming pool. A lot of good has come out of it.First of all, the city has avoided what promised to be a costly and messy mistake that would have caused no end of headaches and unexpected costs.Secondly, the city got what it really wanted — to put the squeeze on city hall landlord Tim Gordon. The Ada County Sheriff’s Office moved the Kuna substation out, costing Gordon about $2,835 in rent every month, and Gordon agreed to a 26 percent reduction in his rent down to $4,000 per month. So if you do the math, Gordon is actually losing about $50,000 per year. I doubt that the $4,000 per month in rent he receives from the city covers his expenses. So Gordon now can’t have much money with which he can sue the city over the local improvement district.So let’s move on.What I heard the loudest during the campaign to get the bond measure passed was an overwhelming agreement that city residents want a municipal pool built.Maybe not everyone, but I’d be willing to bet that at least 66.6 percent of the residents would vote in favor of a municipal pool — if the numbers pencil out.So here’s a start. If the city is interested in providing a recreation opportunity for its residents, keeping Kuna dollars in Kuna, I have a suggestion on how to make it happen.

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About Me

I am the editor of the Kuna Melba News, which my wife, Nicola, and I purchased in September 2006.
I went to Syracuse University, receiving degrees in newspaper journalism and English textual studies.
My first day as a professional journalist was on June 24, 1994, at the Current-Argus in Carlsbad, N.M., where I met Nicola.
From 1995 to 1998, I was at the News-Herald in Mentor, Ohio, just outside Cleveland.
Nicola and I moved to San Francisco in 1998, where I went to work for the San Mateo County Times, eventually becoming managing editor.
In 2001, we moved to Rochester, N.Y., where I was an assistant metro editor at the Democrat and Chronicle for five years.
Nicola and I bought our first house and started our family, with our two sons, Luke and Robert.
Nicola and I also started to seriously consider purchasing our own newspaper.
We found the Kuna Melba News on a businesses for sale web site and purchased it in September 2006.